, 1887-03-17
Another Terrible Railroad Acct.
dent near Boston.
Several Cars go Through Bridge
and Totally Wrecked.
A Large Number Of Passengers
Killed and Wounded.

Cured this III prning ON the Deadham
branch of the Boston IL Providence
railroad, between Forest Hill and
Roslindale at what is known as Bussey
Park bridge. The O'Clock train from
Deadham, consisting of seven cars and
a baggage car, under charge OF Con-
ductor Tilden, broke through the
bridge. The engine and three cars
went over safely but five others fell
through the bridge to the road be-
meath, II distance of thirty feet. The
last car, which was smoker, turned
completely over and struck on top of
the others, all being crushed almost
out of shape.
II has been impossible to obtain u
correct and complete list of the killed
and wounded, owing to che fact that
Immediately after the catastrophe oc-
CURED the victims were hastily re-
moved from the scene and in such
widely diverse directions that
it is extremely difficult to
trace them correctly. Some of the
injured were at once conveyed to their
homes, others were taken to hospitals,
while others still found temporary
shelter in residences in the immediate
neighborhood. Some of the dead-a
majority of them in fact-were brought
to the city hospital morgue, but there
were others taken to the depots at Ros-
1indale, Forest Hill and Canterbury.
Agents of the railway company are
now diligently at work endeavoring to
compile complete statistics of the
calamities and full list of casualties
will doubtless be furnished at the EARL.
est practicable moment. All day n
large corps of surgeons have been at
work attending the injured, who are
more numerous than was at first re-
ported it being now estimated that
nearly thirty persons received severe
wounds. OF these, it is said, number
will probably die. A curious feature
of the disaster is found in the fact
that of the bridge that went down with
the wreck not scrap of iron
remained attached to the abutments,
and but for the chasm and
awful wreck beneath there
was nothing to indicate that bridge
had once spanned the river. The
wreck of the bridge lay under the de-
bris of the train, almost completely
shut out from view. Lying by the
aide of one of the splintered cars was
one of the main iron girders of the
bridge, which showed n clean new frac-
ture through its entire breadth. This
girder was composed of two parallel
plates of heavy wrought iron connect
ed by braces of wrought iron and bolt
ed together. The opinion is generally
expressed 10y those who have persons
ally inspected the wreck that the
breaking OF this girder was the imme-
date cause of the disaster, but there
is much doubt as to the cause of the
breaking of the girder. 1t is stated
by some that there was II jarring and
humping sensation just previous to the
crash, which gives color to the story
that the fourth car, the first to go
through the bridge, was derailed and
thrown from its trucks to the ties on
the bridge with such force as to cause
its heavy iron supports TO give way.
At tie point where the parallel pieces
there was found fracture in
the iron, part of which was
rusted and indicated an old flaw.
while the other portions showed clean
fractures. This might, in the opinion
OF some persons, indicate that the old
flaw had weakened the truss, or gir-
der, to such an extent that when the
full weight OF the train came upon the
bridge it caused the remaining section
Of truss To give away, thus allowing
the entire structure to fall. Another
fact bearing upon the cause OF the
disaster is the condition of the cars
which went over the bridge with
scarcely less damage than was in
ilic,rd upon the cars that went
through to the highway. The first
slyn- of violence is upon the wood
work OF the second truck of the first
car of the train. A very violent blow
from underneath, as before mentioned,
fractured very heavy 4xlO inch oak
timber in the frame of the truck, mid
way between the rails and between the
two axles. The blow was so heavy
that it lifted the truck from the track
and deraled the car. Engineer
White says that when going across
the bridge he felt II shock which he
thought might have been caused by
broken axle. This, however, could not
possibly have been the first cause of
the accident, for the trucks OF the first
two cars are in good condition except
as regards the fractured oak timber
mentioned above. The only remain
ing possible cause of the accident is
broken rail, and il is doubtful as be-
fore stated if an Investigation into this
point could result satisfactory for
there are many pieces of broken and
twisted rails coiled up III the wreck.
The probable cause OF the smashing
nm of the three cars nearest the engine
which remained on top of the embank-
ment is that they must have jumped
the track when the rear cars went